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Home , Battle of Britain, Carl Raymond Davis, Sullington

ABOUT THE TRAIL This is a self guided A24 walking trail. A29 A264 A281 A264 A281 Horsham A29 Heritage Trails A281 Lower Beeding A24 A281 Ups and Downs A272 A272 West Grinstead A29 Knepp

Dial Post Partridge West Green Chiltington of ’s A281 A24 A283 Ashington Henfield

Storrington Wiston A281 & Sullington & Sullington’s Amberley Washington Rusper

A24 A283 A29 Upper Rudgwick Faygate A264 Beeding Warnham A281 A264 A281 Slinfold Horsham A29 Areas of Natural Beauty/South Downs National Park military heritage

A281 Lower Barns Green Beeding A24 Billingshurst Southwater X Nuthurst Coneyhurst A281 A272 HOW TO FIND US Coolham A272 West Cowfold Grinstead A29 Knepp Start point: St Mary’s Church, Sullington, Partridge West Green Pulborough Chiltington Thakeham A281off the A283 and the postcode is RH20 4AE, A24 Coldwaltham A283 Ashington Henfieldwhere there is some parking.

Storrington Wiston A281

Amberley Washington Small Dole Designed and Printed by Treetop Design Print. Tel: 01293 863131 A283 Upper BeedingACCESS & FACILITIES Steyning Bramber Walking Grade: Medium. It is not suitable for anyone needing assistance, in poor health or with a mobility scooter. Stout and robust footwear is necessary on the stony and flinty ground; much of the walk is across the Downs, which may be slippery and unsuitable during or after wet weather. It is suitable for dogs but they must be kept on a lead as sheep and cattle graze on the Downs and there are horse riders about. The walk climbs 560 feet to an altitude of 664 feet above sea level. Two of the roads have no pedestrian footpaths. Distance & time: The basic walk is 6.5 miles Facilities: There are no public toilets on the route. Sullington Barn opposite the Church is open at weekends and bank holidays and has a café and toilets. There are various places to eat in Storrington’s High Street.

FIND OUT MORE: To learn more about the heritage of the wider district and discover additional trails, please visit www.horshammuseum.org

Permissions Frank M Stout photo – World Rugby Museum, Twickenham Carl R Davis photo – McGill University Archives Copyright of the Francis Mond photo is with the Mond Family.

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ahead up to the South Downs Way with Home Farm Ups and Downs on your right. Climb up to the South Downs Way and onto a flinted of Storrington’s & track. Look back at the glorious views from Butser Hill in the far west to Chanctonbury Ring in the east, while straight ahead are the North Downs. Note Sullington’s military the different colours of the four sandpits between Storrington and Washington. Continue until shortly heritage before the top and go through a pair of double gates is on your left by a wooded copse. 4 Memorial stone seat to Lord Denman, MC and Storrington and Sullington are both mentioned his wife. Charles Denman won his MC in the Western in the Doomsday Book (1086); this Trail will show Desert in 1942 and lived at Highden House, which is where to look for the military heritage of the area. visible to the south from the South Downs Way. The northerly panorama from here is magnificent. The villages lie in the lea of the beautiful South Continue uphill to reach the South Downs Way, a clearly marked track. Downs with views for miles around. The landscape Turn left to go east for half a mile (about 10 minutes) reflects its livestock, agricultural and industrial to see a cast iron clad bunker on your left and views usage. No were fought on the land but towards Chanctonbury Ring. many in the skies above. The area was regularly used for military accommodation and training DIRECTIONS FOR THE WALK (Italics) in the last century, as well as taking in evacuees POINTS OF INTEREST (Blue/Black) from in 1939. Storrington was one of Inside Sullington Church. the first villages in to have a WWII Home 1 Here lies the figure of a knight carved in marble, Guard unit. believed to be one of the de Covert family from the 12th century. The knight is clad in chain mail; look for his shield and the scabbard (sheath) for his sword. St Mary’s Church, Storrington has military Go east though the churchyard and at the end, opposite memorials on display, which will be explored in the lychgate. this trail, covering the last 200 years of conflicts 2 The Memorial to Submarine E24 in the including the Napoleonic Wars against France Churchyard commemorates Lieutenant Commander (1803-15) with the Peninsula War in Spain and George Wyatt Edgell Naper and his thirty four crew. The submarine was sunk on 27th March 1916 Portugal starting in 1808. Napoleon was finally off Heligoland Bight, (off the German coast) while defeated at Waterloo () in 1815. The operating as a minelayer on its second patrol. The Crimean War (1853-1856), also features, where memorial is unique in the shape of a lamp-column the British fought with the French against the formed by an old stone roller. Russians around the Black Sea. The Old Workshop Café, which is open at weekends and Bank Holidays, is in the barn on the left and has a museum portraying local family and country life since Storrington played its part in the First and Saxon times. Second World Wars with the Roll of Honour With the barn behind you, walk south beside the farm in Storrington’s High Street and on the War and shortly go through the open gate on your left, taking the footpath onto the clearly marked bridleway. Memorials at St Mary’s, Storrington and St BEWARE of galloping horses when you cross the gallop Mary’s, Sullington recording those who died. In through a wooden gate by the ‘Wildlife Conservation Exploring both World Wars (1914-18) and (1939-1945), the Headland’ sign into a beautiful avenue of trees. At the end, turn right onto the bridleway and bearing left Horsham came to assist Britain and many were around Barns Farm continue along the centuries old billeted and trained in the area, especially in metalled track. District’s World War II prior to the ill fated in 3 Barns Farm Camp was built during 1939-40 for the Heritage August 1942 and D-Day in June 1944. Canadian troops. At the end, bear left and then turn right. Continue to the end, then turn right and follow the road straight

Ups and Downs

5 During World War II, the Canadians used the cast iron clad bunker for exercises and practising A283 Sullington flame throwing. The Canadians reinforced three Warren roads from Storrington to the Downs including Storrington Exploring Chantry Lane. Until 2019, there was a Churchill MkII tank nearby which was used by the 9 Horsham Canadian Army for target practice. 10 District’s Retrace your steps westward along the Way with Sandgate Heritage views over to the (look ahead and 8 Quarry then to the left). At the signpost, where you can see Arundel Castle 7 in the distance, turn right onto the tarmacked road. Walk down to the former millpond with ‘Chantry Gerston Clayton Mere’ on your right and ‘the Chantry’ on the left, Farm Farm turn left to Chantry Farm - go through the livery area keeping to the footpath; do not take the private 6 road on the right. Through the metal gate and up the START New Barn The Old Copse hill. At the top, go through a tied metal gate by the FINISH Rectory footpath sign (and tie it closed behind you), bear left Waterfall Cottage 2 and through a small wooden gate; continue up the 1 rise into a lovely wooded area until Greyfriars Farm. Reservoir Chantry Farm Turn right, continue down Greyfriars Lane, which was The Chantry 3 the main route from the coast to Storrington, there Sullington Rowdell Holt Home is a house named ‘Faraday’ on the right. West Farm 6 On 1st November 1940, a Junkers JU-88, badly damaged by anti-aircraft fire, heading for Northern France, was unable to clear the Downs and crashed Chantry Hill next to the house called ‘Faraday’. Three of the four Points of interest crew died. 1

Carrying on you reach Storrington. On your left is Trail Sullington Hill 4 Barnsfarm Hill the Parish Church, St Mary’s. Chantry Post 5 7 Inside the Church there are memorials to many KEY soldiers of previous wars. Pick up a leaflet for full Car Park details. Some commemorate the Bradford family, who fought in the Napoleonic Wars from Corunna St. Mary’s Church to Waterloo. Rev. William Bradford, Chaplain of Brigade to the British Expedition led by Sir John Moore, was in the retreat to Corunna (Spain). He became Rector of Storrington from 1811 to 1857. His memorial is in the east window in the Chancel. His younger brother, Sir Henry Hollis Bradford joined the Grenadier Guards and served in the 8 10 Peninsular War. A Lieutenant Colonel, latterly on the staff of the Duke of Wellington, he was mortally wounded at Waterloo. His memorial is over the south door. Wilmot Henry Bradford was William’s son; he commanded a Rifle Brigade in the Crimean War. On the wall of the Lady Chapel, Robert Alexander Dalzell, Earl of Carnwath, also in the Grenadier Guards, fought in the Peninsular War. On the north wall is a brass plate recording the death on active service of Harold Austin. He was a 2nd Lieutenant, Worcestershire Regiment, killed in action at Cape Helles, Gallipoli in 1916. His father, Major Austin was one of the Principals of the Officers’ College in Storrington. Nearby is the memorial to Captain Francis Mond of the Royal Flying shot down in May 1918 over the Somme. Turn left outside the door, following the path & bearing right into the Churchyard. 8 In the Churchyard near the Bradford family vault is the grave of , DFC, a South Frank Stout, captain of Team 1899 African-born American-British of the of Britain. He claimed nine enemy aircraft destroyed, four probably destroyed and four damaged, before he was killed in his Hurricane by a Messerschmitt Me 109 in . 5 Straight ahead, down the churchyard, in the row of trees after the side gate is a grave with a cross to Frank Moxon Stout, MC, who was captain of the British and Irish Lions rugby team in 1899 and also of England; he was awarded the Military Cross in September 1914. Opposite the churchyard in the Old School is Storrington & District Museum, which is open on certain days - check www.storringtonmuseum.com for information. Return to Church Street (the continuation of Greyfriars Lane). Just after the ‘Old Forge’ on the left, was the Military College, which used buildings on both sides of the street, but those on the east side have now been demolished. 9 The College, Church Street was founded in 1871 by Rev. George Faithfull. It was an army ‘crammer’ which took over various houses at the north end of Church Street. In 1888 Major Austin took over the college until 1899 and the outbreak of the Boer War. The college flourished until WW1 and closed in 1931. WWII Bunker Roll of Honour, Storrington At the end of the road, turn right into the High Street (A283) and look out for the wall plaques on the outside of the White Horse Hotel with the Roll of Honour. 7 8 2 10 The Roll of Honour commemorates the fallen men and one woman of World War 1 and is a reproduction of the watercolour panels painted by Paul Hardy; the originals are in the Storrington Museum. Continuing along the High Street, turn right opposite the Storrington stork sign which is on the north side of the road, (Storrington’s name is derived from the Saxon for a place where storks are found) and follow the footpath left into Hanover Walk, then left into Meadowside. Follow the road round and turn right at the ‘Friends of Meadowside’ board with the playground on your right. Shortly, at Chantry Lane, turn right for 100 yards, cross over, follow footpath on the left which is to the right of the large gated entrance to Chantry Sandpit. Walk through the wood between the River Stor and the sandpit and over a small wooden bridge to a metal kissing gate. Follow the track diagonally across the field to a big oak tree and then continue round the field, with views of the Chantry sandpit on your left, to a gate and stile. Over the stile, bear right up the slope to Sullington Farm. At the top, keep left and then right onto the tarmacked road following the sign to St Mary’s Church. You are back where you started. Francis Mond - Pilot Carl Davis – ace Memorial to Submarine E24